The Gingerbread Lady
- Synopsis
- The Cast
- The Crew
- Performance Details
- Photos
- Photos
- Reviews
Synopsis
In the 1970's, Evy Meara, a 40 something year old nightclub singer, and a recovering alcoholic, is welcomed home from rehab by her loyal friends and teenage daughter. Evy's rehab was precipitated by a disastrous relationship with a guitar player ten years her junior. Evy's closest male friend is Jimmy Perry, a forty-year-old gay actor who is still waiting for his big break. Her best girlfriend is Toby, an ageing glamour queen who can't seem to hang onto her husband. And Evy's ex-boyfriend is a thoughtless freeloader who tries to weasel his way back into her affections when he is dumped by his latest 18 year old conquest. The only relatively well-adjusted person in this play is Evy's sweet and loving daughter, Polly.
Neil Simon is the master of the one line gag and the first act of "The Gingerbread Lady" is rife with them. We never consciously notice the clever character development because we're always laughing too hard. Simon has crafted a play full of the most lovable losers you'll ever want to meet. The second act, however, takes a more serious turn as Simon explores the real problems associated with Evy's alcoholism. As we soon see, living with a drinker is not all fun and games -- not for her family and friends, nor for herself.
When Elaine Stritch first read this play she swore that Simon had written it about her. In fact, a handful of notoriously colourful actresses have all claimed that this play was modelled on their not so "model" lives.
Not unlike the ginger snap, this is a sweet little play with a bit of a bite to it !
"He has combined an amusing comedy with the atmosphere of great sadness. His characteristic wit and humour are at their brilliant best, and his serious story of lost misfits can often be genuinely and deeply touching"~ N.Y. Post
"Mr. Simon's play is as funny as ever the customary avalanche of hilarity, and
landslide of pure unbuttoned joy"~ N.Y. Times
Written By : Neil Simon
Directed by : Andrew Clark
The Cast:
| Evy Meara | Jo St Clair |
| Jimmy Perry | Aldo Longobardi |
| Toby Landau | Rachel Burfield |
| Polly Meara | Carla Hardie |
| Lou Tanner | Luke Budgen |
| Manuel | Ben Todd |
The Crew
| Director | Andrew Clark |
| Stage Manager | Joy Whellum |
| Hair and Make-up | Anne Louise Smith |
| Costume Coordinator | Sue McKenzie |
| Set Construction | Max Bowden, Ken Callis,Kym Clayton,
David Cuppleditch, Stan Fairfield, Sean Smith |
| Lighting design | Stephen Dean |
| Lighting operation | Warren McKenzie |
| Sound design and Operation | Sean Smith |
| Set dressing | Judy Rogers |
| Properties | Judy Rogers & Elaine Latcham |
| Backstage | Mary Cummins, Elaine Latcham, Judy Rogers |
| Publicity | Judy Rogers |
| Ticketing and Box Office | Kym Clayton, Karen Payne |
| Front of House Management | Joy and Allan Whellum |
| Programme | Kym Clayton |
| Photography | Nat Rogers |
| Business Management | Andrew Clark |
| Programme cover, poster & post card design | Visionzone |
Performance Dates:
Thursday 17th May 2012 to Saturday 19th May 2012 8.00pm
Thursday 24th May 2012 to Saturday 26th May 2012 8.00pm
Saturday 26th May 2012 2.00pm
Preview Wednesday 16th May 2012 8.00pm
Domain Theatre
Marion Cultural Centre
Cnr Diagonal and Sturt Roads (Adjacent Westfield Shoppingtown Marion)
Oaklands Park
Photos
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Adelaide Theatre Guide Review
Have you ever made gingerbread? It takes a long time. A really long time. (That's a metaphor!)The Gingerbread Lady is a show about a group of has-beens and never-weres trying to rise above the gin-soaked cesspool of their lives.
Click here to see Full Review
Joanne St Claire is competent as Evy, the eponym - a failed club singer back from rehab (huge twist: she falls off the wagon). Carla Hardie, as her daughter, gives a nice grounding performance throughout the production. The two lack any kind of chemistry, but that sort of works, in a bit of unintentional serendipity ("hey, I'm the daughter you never really saw through the drunken haze of the last two decades, let's build a relationship").
Ben Todd (as a Latino delivery boy) and Luke Budgen (as a worthless ex-boyfriend) have accents that go on a world tour, which is funny for all the wrong reasons. They do quite well with their parts otherwise and eke a few yuks.
Technically, the show is simple. Box set, old furniture; simple lighting; audible sound.
Direction, by Andrew Clark, is mixed bag. Some scenes are good; others, not so good. Pacing suffers the same symptoms: some scenes buzz along, while others just g e t b o g g e d.
On that note, back to the metaphor. It's not very deep; the show is long. This is partly Neil Simon's fault; the show could really have ended at any point in the second act with the same outcome, but Simon keeps it in an interminable holding pattern. When you spend the last half hour thinking "JUST END"' it's not really Pulitzer-winning stuff.
Reviewed by Aaron MacDonald
"Barefoot Review"
Neil Simon's "The Gingerbread Lady" takes quite a while to get started, and doesn't really begin to make its point until well into the second act. Former singer Evy returns home after 10 weeks of rehabilitation from an alcohol addiction. With the support of her friends, Evy Attempts to overcome her daughter moving home, her ex-boyfriend trying to beg his way back into her life and a birthday party where 'off the wagon' gets redefined. But Evy's greatest strength will be her biggest weakness; her friends lives are just as messed up as hers and staying on track might be harder than she expected.Click here to see Full Review
A traditional box set by a huge team of volunteers (no designer credited) was functional, albeit a little ghastly, decorated in the least attractive combination of late 70s, 80s and early 90s miss-matched furniture.
The show hit is straps during the turbulent birthday party in the second act. Everything before and after it, despite great work from the cast, I found difficult to really get into. With enough comings and goings to constitute a farce, but whilst still trying to tackle some pretty major issues, this play felt like it had a bit of an identity crisis, which just didn't work for me. This is a solid production, with a talented cast - but Neil Simon's early foray into combining comedy with serious dramatic subject matter is a writing failure for me.
Reviewed by Paul Rodda May 2012
